John 8 - The Truth Will Set You Free!

John 8 - NIV

John 8 - Enduring Word Commentary

Key Verses

31 To the Jews who had believed him, Jesus said, “If you hold to my teaching, you are really my disciples. 32 Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.” 33 They answered him, “We are Abraham’s descendants and have never been slaves of anyone. How can you say that we shall be set free?” 34 Jesus replied, “Very truly I tell you, everyone who sins is a slave to sin. 35 Now a slave has no permanent place in the family, but a son belongs to it forever. 36 So if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed.

Commentary

When Jesus said, "If you hold to my teaching, you are really my disciples", he meant that being his follower is not just about words but about a way of life. It seems as though these Jews had already taken a step toward believing in Jesus. Now he lets them know that if they are going to follow him, they are going to need tol make a commitment to obeying his teachings. Their thoughts, words, and actions would need to be the thoughts, words, and actions Jesus would do if he were them.

This is a good reminder to us that being a disciple of Jesus is a lot more than just believing He is the Son of God. Of course, that's important, but if it is only head knowledge are not truly his disciple. 

Since Jesus is, "The way, the truth, and the life", when we follow His way, He will guide us in His truth, and we will experience His abundant life. We will experience "the life we've always wanted", the one we were intended to enjoy as God's children. The opposite of following Jesus is following the ways of the world. They purport to be the truth, yet they are a lie. They promise everyting and deliver nothing. 

The Jews responded by saying that were not slaves to anyone. But Jesus was talking about slavery to sin. He says, "If anyone keeps on sinning again and again, they are a slave to it." You might say theyt were addicted to sin until a power greater than them came to deliver them. Jesus came to break the power of sin, death, and the power of the devil! 

Many think following Jesus is restrictive, as if he were trying to take away all of our fun. But trying to be satisfied by the things of this world is like drinking cups of salt water. You keep drinking more but it only makes you thirstier. Jesus says when you drink from the living water he brings, you will never thirst again! 

Application

In what sense do you see yourself as a slave to your sinful nature? How has Jesus set you free from the things you thought you needed to make you happy? 

Are you experiencing the truth that sets you free? What lies does the evil one try to get you believe, which only steal the life Jesus wants for you?

As Jesus will say a little later in John 10:10, 

"The thief came to steal, kill, and destroy, but I have come to give you life, life to the full!"

Prayer

Jesus, thank you for setting us free from sin, death, and the power of the devil. Help us to live in the freedom we have in Christ and not return to a spirit of slavery. Help us to be aware of the evil one when he tempts us to believe in his lies and remember you are the way, the truth, and the life. Amen.   

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Matthew 18:6-9 Causing to Stumble

Causing to Stumble 6 “If anyone causes one of these little ones—those who believe in me—to stumble, it would be better for them to have a large millstone hung around their neck and to be drowned in the depths of the sea. 7 Woe to the world because of the things that cause people to stumble! Such things must come, but woe to the person through whom they come! 8 If your hand or your foot causes you to stumble, cut it off and throw it away. It is better for you to enter life maimed or crippled than to have two hands or two feet and be thrown into eternal fire. 9 And if your eye causes you to stumble, gouge it out and throw it away. It is better for you to enter life with one eye than to have two eyes and be thrown into the fire of hell. Reflection: Matthew reminds us today that we don't live only unto ourselves. Our actions have repercussions on others either directly or indirectly. This is especially true for children and youth, who are impressionable. I still remember when I was...
Read more

"Everything in Moderation" ...Is that in the Bible?

1 Corinthians 6 12 “I have the right to do anything,” you say—but not everything is beneficial. “I have the right to do anything”—but I will not be mastered by anything. 13 You say, “Food for the stomach and the stomach for food, and God will destroy them both.” The body, however, is not meant for sexual immorality but for the Lord, and the Lord for the body. You have heard the saying, "Everything in moderation". While that may be true in some sense, it really depends what that "everything" is. Crack cocaine in moderation? Sex with a prostitute in moderation? A glass of wine in moderation? A Big Mac a day in moderation? You see the point! While that may seem like an extreme argument, Paul is trying to snuff out a problem in Corinthians church. The problem was people were dabbling in sexual immorality and saying it was okay. Since they were forgiven what would it hurt to engage in a little bit of fun. But when you read the list of the things in the verses above...
Read more

Luke 8 - The Key to Exponential Growth!

Image
4  While a large crowd was gathering and people were coming to Jesus from town after town, he told this parable:   5  “A farmer went out to sow his seed. As he was scattering the seed, some fell along the path; it was trampled on, and the birds ate it up.   6  Some fell on rocky ground, and when it came up, the plants withered because they had no moisture. 7  Other seed fell among thorns, which grew up with it and choked the plants.   8  Still other seed fell on good soil. It came up and yielded a crop, a hundred times more than was sown.” Click Here to Read Luke 8 This is a very familiar parable for Christians.  We have heard it many times.  It is a simple parable in some senses, but worth delving into time and time again because its principles are so important.   What I would like to focus on today is the last line, which says the seed came up and yielded a crop hundred times more than was sown.  At the end of t...
Read more